Pena says he spoke with four of the dancers Sunday and pledged to support them and offer an artistic space while they determine their next steps.

Despite the Cuban National Ballet's prestige, dancers routinely defect while on international tour. The first dancers defected in 1966 in Paris, citing political reasons. More recently dancers say they have left also for economic and artistic motives. Cuban ballet dancers earn on average no more than $30 a month.

Pena himself is an exiled Cuban dancer and has taken in numerous ballerinas throughout the years.